The National Immigration Law Center applauds the Senate’s confirmation of Alejandro Mayorkas as deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). His approval by the Senate, along with the confirmation earlier this week of DHS Secretary Jeh Johnson, brings stability and strong management to a department that has lacked permanent leadership at its highest levels.

The U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) agency has announced that it deported 368,644 immigrants in fiscal year 2013. ICE removals this year bring the total deportations during the five years of the Obama administration to almost 2 million, surpassing the number of deportations during the eight years of the George W. Bush presidency. Here is a statement from Don Lyster, director of NILC’s Washington, DC, office.

Jeh Johnson was confirmed Monday to succeed Janet Napolitano as secretary of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS), an agency that has been without a leader since Secretary Napolitano departed in August. Johnson, a partner at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison, LLP, previously served in the public interest sector as general counsel of the Department of Defense and as general counsel of the Department of the Air Force. Johnson was the first African American partner of Paul, Weiss and also is the first African American secretary of Homeland Security. Here is a statement from Marielena Hincapié, executive director of the National Immigration Law Center.

National and local immigration and civil rights advocacy groups are urging the Senate to swiftly confirm Alejandro Mayorkas, who currently serves as director of U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services (USCIS), to become the next deputy secretary of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security (DHS). In a letter signed by 29 groups, Mayorkas is praised for his “extraordinary leadership” in carrying out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals (DACA) program, a 2012 humanitarian initiative that grants permission to certain young immigrants who came to the U.S. as children to temporarily live and work here.

Today marks the twenty-second day of the national Fast for Families led by four immigrants’ rights leaders — SEIU’s Eliseo Medina, NAKASEC’s Dae Joong (“DJ) Yoon, Mi Famila Vota’s Cristian Avila (a DREAMer), and Sojourners’ Lisa Sharon Harper — to show that their sacrifice of food pales in comparison to the suffering of families who have been separated or who fear being torn apart under the inhumane immigration system.

NILC Executive Director Marielena Hincapié is fasting for 24 hours today as part of the National Days to Act, Fast and Pray — her second fasting period. In a show of solidarity, NILC staff fasted on November 20 and visited with the fasters at their tent on the National Mall. Hincapié issued this statement.